The market demands and revenues for displacement-sensing devices, such as accelerometers and gyroscopes including micro-electronic systems (MEMS)-based sensors have been growing steadily. The integration of inertial MEMS sensors into a wide range of consumer electronics, cars, and defense applications is driving the need for smaller, cheaper, lower-power, lower-noise, and more accurate sensors. However, technologies for producing micro-scale accelerometers and gyroscopes have remained essentially unchanged since their inception years ago. A typical sensor in an accelerometer or gyroscope may include a movable proof-mass with the proof-mass displacement sensed electrically, e.g., using inter-digitated capacitor plates. However, traditional electrostatic sensing may not allow for scalable production of on-chip sensors, lasers, and detectors, and may not provide sufficient sensitivity or desired sensitivity range.